Oil-well-tool operator



C. T. DOUGHERTY OIL WELL .TOOL OPERATOR Filed Dec. 5, 1925 2Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

fe??? A ToRNExs.

Z A f n. @WNW e Feb. 8., 1927. r

` c. T. DOUGHERTY 'OIL WELL Tool.. OPERATOR Filed Dec. s. 1923 2sheets-sheet 2 Mflff,

Patented Feb. 8, l927.

cnARLnsT/DOUGHERTY, oTLnIaoonn' CALIFORNIA, Assrenoa, BY DIRECT ANDiansNn AssIeNivInNTs, OF SIX TIFTY-rrTTns TOIIATTIE E; noUeHniaTmsrX.ItIFTY'- FIFTITS TON, 'H nonennnTn AND SIX FIrTY-rIrTrIs To F. o.DOUGHERTY, ALIioI vIIUInrINeTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA; SIX FIrTY-FITTIIS Too. o. CAMPBELL, or coA'LINeA, CALIFORNIA; SIXTITTYTFIFTIISTO n. L.JOHNSTON, OF'sANTA NAR- BARA, CALIFORNIA; 'TI-INEE TIFTY-rIFTIis To I1.A. CAMPBELL, or LONG BEACI,

n CALIFORNIA; THREE TWENTY-FIETHS T Vv. V7. SMITH, TV10 TWENTY-FIFTHS TOJ'. H. DUNAWAY, TVT() TVENTY-FIFTHS TO RAY M. WAGNER,'IfVOvTV/'ENTY-*FFTIHS TO CLARENCE WAGNER, AND ONE TWENTY-FFTH TOETI-IBL G.- SMITH, `ALL OF FRESNO COUNTY', CALIFORNIA'.

OIL-WELL-TOOL OPERATOR. l

Application led'December 3,1923. Serial No. 678,371..

This invention relates to a tool for use in voil well drilling,` andespecially to a tool Y 81/4, G1/ZL and 491/2 inches.

erable de 3th With a sinfrle line of casino'l and itis thereforenecessary to start with a large casing7 for instance, 121/2 inches, andproceed until Vthis is landed, then continue with a l() inch. casing,andso on, the different sizes employed being usually 121/510, In otherWords, there may be four orivel different strings of casing in aWell. YY

Innumei'able troubles kare encountered in connection with carryingeachl` string of casingV to the furthest possible depth, among these maybe mentioned, parting-of the easing at' diiteientrplaces'by breakage ofthel casing, strippingfofthreads, etc., treezing up of the casing,l dueto external 'friction or settling ot' sand, `loss .ot tools,

' vleaky joints, etc. Various/'forms of tools are employed tor fishingout or removing a parted string ot' casing and lost tools, but notalways 'with success. Similarlyyleaky joints may lue-tightened, butoftencausing damage to other joints, thereby necessitating removal otthe `casing and insertioiiof nevi7 sections. The failures encounteredare com-l paratively numerous' and 'any number f of abandoned Wells maybe found throughout Vthe various oil districts; the lWork performed andthe material lostA in lsuchinstances representing an investment'`otinillionsot. dollars. The inaincause of failure Y `when loosening a4frozen casing or removing a parted casing is vdue to the fact that thetools employed are only capable of pulling' A out or lifting the casingyas a Whole. The upward pull or strain exerted*v under such conditionsis enormous and .sometimes causesgparting of the casing again and again,or further loss of tools, thus renderingthe operation ot clearing theWell increasingly ditlicult. l f Y Y The purpose otl the presentinvention is to provide a tool which is capable of more efficientlyhandling ditlicultiesof this char# acter andV others, among `v'vhich,may be named the following :ci i ,Y Y l. Removing a frozen or lostcasing, section by section, 1

2. `rllaking out broken pieces of casing;

3. Setting'up leaky joints atrany point desirable. i.

4.. Setting up die collars or die *nipple-5.(

5. Disconnecting casing in case of Water leaks.

Y 6. Removing tools that are bull-doggedin the casing.V .Y l LV y v 7.Locating joints Where casing is cemented. f .H y y Taking. out oldcasing to shut olfvvater, 9. Unserewing` casingth'at is too rotten tostand strain from top of the hole.V y

v10. Tightening jointsat any place desired Without tonging casing andspoili-ng-joints in the string above.

11. Straightening up tools that are out y oI` line with the casing so asto get them into the casing.V l j `12, Removing a stri-ng, or-connectingup and removing` as-a Whole, and in case of failure disconnecting atWilli `and at placey desired.

13. Connect-ing tool joints on lost tools or un'sciewing the same.`

141. The tool may` also be einployedV for the purpose ot rotatingunder-reamers of lvarious makesaiid construction. .Y ,v

.15. The tool 'may also be employed for the piirpiris'e et removing orattaching out? a piece at al time,

ting tools or bits of the type employed in connection with arotatingcasing.

16. The tool may also be employed for the purpose of supporting amilling` or cutting tool, whereby obstructions in the casing or on toolslodged vin the casing` may be cut away. Y f f A The invention brieflystated comprises a ratchet block, a nut carried thereby, a spiral shaftextending through the nut, means for imparting a reciprocal movement tothe shaft, and means carried by the shaft capable of imparting a turningand a lifting movement.

The invention further consists of the parts and the construction,combination and arrangement of parts as hereinafter more fully describedand claimed, having reference to the accompanying drawings, in which-VFig. 1 is a section of a well showing the application of the invention.Y

Fig. '2 is a continuation view of Fig. 1, showing the position of thetool in the well and in engagement with the upper section of a loststring of casing.

Fig. 3 Vshows a modified form of the tool.

Y Fig. 4 is a plan view of the ratchet block partly broken away.

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the ratchet block partly broken away. n

Referring to the drawings in detail, A indicates a ratchet block ofsuitable length and diameter, on the Vexterior surface of which aremounted a plurality of gripping pawls or yratchet members Q. .Thesepawls are pivotally mounted and are normally held in engaging positionby springs indicated at 3. The pawls are provided for the purpose oflocking the ratchet block against turning movement within the wellcasing in one direction, and to release the block and permit turningmovement thereof in the opposite direction. The ratchet blockispreferably forged or otherwise formed from a sin-V gle piece of steelas considerable strain is Xerted thereon when the tool is in operation.,Extending through the ratchet block from end to vend, and centrallypositioned therein, is a spiral shaped opening 4t through I will referto Figs. 1 and 2, Y i ures represent a section of a deep oil well,

which extends a spiral shaft 5. This shaft is provided with a collar atits opposite ends as at 6, which are provided for the purpose oflimiting` the stroke or reciprocal movement of the shaft with relationto the ratchet block. Forming an extension of ythe lower end of theshaft 5 is a square .shaft '4". This shaft is provided for the supportof a tool holder andV serves vthe function of imparting a turningmovement and a lifting movement thereto.

To clearly illustrate one use of the tool,

vthe upper casing representing a common 8 lnchcasmg as shown at 8, andthe succeed- These fig-A mately two hundred feet below the lower endofthe S inch casing. There are numerous fishing tools employed for thepurpose of removing lost casing,vamong which may be named Vthefollowing, spears, die collars and die nipples. YThese tools often provea failure due to the fact that they are only capable of one function,to-wit, that of eX- erting a pull or lifting a lost casing section as awhole. The upward pull or strain required under such conditions is oftenso great that the casing parts or the tools free themselves, and morethan one well has been abandoned due to -failure in this direction. Thepresent tool is particularly suited for an instance of this character asit is capable of entering the well and engaging the uppermost section ofthe lost casing and Valso capable of unscrewing the casing, section bysection, and removing the same. This is, obviously a great advantage ascomparatively no pull :is required to remove the casing, section by'section.

The tool proper' forming the subjectV matter of this application isshown in Figs.- 1

and 2. It is supported near the lower end .Y

of the 8 inch casinfr by means of an inner casing as illustrateda at 10,being connected with the ratchet block by means of a swivel connectionas at 11. The casing 10 is merely rovided for the purposeof supportingthe ratchet block and the swivel 11 to permitj turning movement of thesame inone direction,ras will hereinafter be described.

Extending downwardly through the'inner casing 10 is a drill line 12, andforming a connection vbetween the drill line andthe spiral shaft 5 are acombination socket 14 of suitable construction, a set of jars 15, a'stem16 and a rope socket 17. These several connections areA known as astring of tools and they serve several functions; the combina-y tionsocket 1li, that of making a connection with the shaft 5; the jars 15that of transmitting a driving movement when required; the stem 16 thatofadding weight to the string of tools, and the rope socket that ofconnecting a string of tools with the drill line 12. Y

Suitably attached to the lowcrend of the ratchet block A is a swivelconnection 1o,

turning movement to a section of casing 23, which is suitablyattachedthereto as vat 0^ and itY is provided for the purpose oftransmitting leo Ll t) the casing 23 being merely an extension of thetool and being provided for the purpose of supporting the tool requiredfor the work in hand. i Y- In the present instanee,iI have illustrated`a standard foi'infof spear as at 25.

l The spear is secured tothe lower end of the casing 23 andV is capableof two functions, that of .entering the upper end of the lost casing andengaging the same, and secondly, that of unscrewing the casing andremoving it This is accomplished in the following)r manner:

`Tiththe tool in position in the well as illustrated iirFigs. l and2,.it is only necessary to Vtransn'iit a reciprocal movement to thestring of tools shown in Fig. l. This may Vbe accomplished by fasteningthe drill line to a walking beam or by passing it over a bull wheel.This reciprocal movement is of course transmitted to the shaft 5 and asit passes through the 'nut or spiral shaped opening foi'med in the'atcliet block A, it is obvious that a turning movement will betransmitted thereto when Vtravelling in lan upward direct-ion, thisbeing due to the fact that the pawls. engage the interior of the 8v inchcasing and thereby secure theratchet block against turning movement. Theturning movement of the shaft 5 is also tra-nsinitted to the squarelshaft 7 Vforming an extension thereof, and through the lblock 2O turningmovement is also transmitted' to the casing 231and the spear 25 carriedthereby. The first upward Vmovement of the shaft causes the expandingslips 26 on the spear to grip the upper end of the lost casing, andstill further movement, after the grip has been made, causes a turning`movement to be transmitted to the upper section of the casing 9, therebyunscrewing it with rela-tion to thek collar 2T. The spiral inthe shaft 5is'so arranged that `approximately only one revolution is transmittedduring the upward travel of the same, and vas itv takes several turns ofthe casing to unsciew the saine. it is obvious that shaft 5 must beraisedand lowered from l() to 30 times beforetlie pipe is entirely free.

The ratchet block transmits a ,turningy movement to the spiral-.shaftwhenthis is :inovedin an upward direction and the spiral shaft in turntransmitsa turning movenient to the ratchet block when travelling in adownward direction, this being due to the fact that swivel joints, as atllland 18, are connected with the opposite ends of the .ratchet block,and also due to the Yfact that,

the pawls 2 will onlysecure the ratchet block against' turning .movementin vone direction. "V This is ofy importance as it is necessary` that aturning n'iovement should bev tiansmitted to the engaging tool, forinstance, the spear 2 5 only in one direction.

When a casing section is unscrewed itis Vremoved by lifting the entiremechanism out ot the well, an l then re-inserting the saine andproceeding as described.

The foregoing is a brief 'description of the operation ofthetool,jor'tlie function of.

the same under normal conditions. It may, however, happen that thethreads ofthe casing have been set up or Aso tightly screwed that a slowupward pull or movement of the shaft 5 would not loosen the same: Thejars 15 are then brought into function by attaching the drill line toawalking beam.

great advantage over other tools which AareV only capable of pulling-outthe casing as a Awhole astheyr'oiften prove a failure. The present toolwould not be a' failure under these conditions as it would only have toremove one Vorf-more sections' ofthe casing at a time. YAs stated in thepreamble of the specitication',vthe tool is capable of many functions,that of unscrewing and removing pipe sections as described; setting upleaky joints at any point desired; setting up die'collais or dienipples; disconnect-ing casing. in case of 'water leaks; removing toolsthat arebull-doggedin lthe casinggtaking out old sections of casi-ng,etc. l

A tool such as illustrated in Figs. l and 2 is capable of most of therequirements specified, but only under certain conditions` and Itherefore provide a. modified Vform-of the tool as shown in Fig. 3',this formbeing particularly adapted Vfor tighteningv up or unscrewingcasing sections at anyA de'pthdesired.Y This tool isA lowered into thewell by a drill line and string of tools such as shown in l, and itis'heldV at 'any point' desired by frictional engagement ofA spring armssuch as indicated at 30. Two ratchet blocks are employed as at 3l and82.

Both

llOO

-llU

are identical in construction vto that shown in Figs. 2 and 4,.'one.forming the function of a fliolder, and the other function of a wrenchwhen tightening orunscrewing eas- Y When tightening up sections ingsections. the tool assumes the position shown in Fig. 3, and whenunscrewing casing sections, it

isV only necessary to reverse the position ofthe tool end 'for end asturning movement will then be transmittedv in opposite direc-"V ftions,or it,` is obvious that reversible paw-ls inight'be employed `to' vavoidrturning of the` tool end for end.

The tool shown 1n FigB, as already stated,- vis particularly yadaptedfor setting up or unmin screwing casing sections, the tool being capableof this operation even though one casing is mounted within the other.For instance, the upper ratchet block might en- .gage the inner face ofan 8 inch casing, and

the lower ratchet block might be reduced in diameter to enterY a Grinchcasing. I n that case, the upper ratchet block will serve as a'holderwhether-the 6 inchcasing was heing tightened up or removed.

The tool is capable of many other uses, fer instance, that of lining uplost tools with the end of a casing. It sometimes happens that a drillbit becomes unscrewed or detached with relation to a string of tools. Ifthis should happen, yit is only necessary to attach a tool, known as afram horn, to the end of the square shaft 7 and then lower the tool tothe bottom of the well. A slight upward pull of the shaft 5 will thentransmit a turning movement to the shaftrsection 7 and the ram horn toolattached thereto. This would-cause the ram horn .to engage the drill bitand swing it into alignment with the casing.

It will thus render it possible tovlower an ordinary combination socketto engage and remove the bit.

rlhe important feature of the present invention is the fact that I haveprovided a tool which is capable of transmitting, first of all, aturning movement, secondly, a lifting movement, and third, a drivingmovement.' These movements combined permit attachment and use of varyingforms of tools, and permit handlingof .these tools inra mannerheretofore never attempted.

While certainfeatures of the present invention are more or lessspecifically illustrated, I wish it understood that changes in designand construction may be resorted to within the scope of the appendedclaims.

k1 similarly wish it understood that the materials and finish of theseveral p'artsemployed may be such as the experience and judgment of themanufacturer may dictate or varying conditions may demand.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure byLettersmPatent is 1. A tool of the character described comprising aratchet block, a plurality of pawls pivotally mounted in the ratchetblock engageable with the interior wall of a well casing to secure theratchet block against turning movement in one direction, a nut Vformedwithin the ratchet block, a helically twisted shaft extending throughthenut and slidable therein, a swivel connection below the ratchet block, atool holder attached toV the swivel connection, means for transmit-Vting a turning movement from the helically twisted shaft to the toolholder'and the swivel connection, said means comprising a square shaftforming an extension of the heli-callvtwisted shaft and extending down"Leif/,ece

Vinto the lool holder, and a nutkin the tool holder through which thesquare shaft eX- tends.

2. A tool of the character described comprising a nut, a'threaded shaftextendingthrough the nut, and slidable and turnablc in the nut, meansfor supporting the nut at )risine` a nut a threaded shaft extendingYthrough the nut and slidableand turnable therein, means for supportingthe nut at a predetermined point within a well casing, means on the nutengageable with the well casing to secure the nut Vagainst turningmovement when the shaft travels in one direc-tion to transmit a turningmovement to the shaft, said means adapted to release the nut to permitthis to turn within the wellV casing when the shaft moves iny theopposite direction, a tool holder carried by the shaft, and meansfortransmitting a turning movement from the shaft to the tool holder.

t. A tool of the character described comprising a ratchet block, aplurality of pawls pivotally mounted inthe ratchet block engageable withthe interior wall yof a well casing to secure the ratchet block againstturning movement in one direction, a nut formed in the ratchet block, ahelically twisted shaft extending therethrough, and slidable andturnable therein, and a tool holder carried by the shaft adapted to beturned thereby.

5. A tool of the character described comprising a ratchet block, aplurality of pa wisV vpivotally mounted in the ratchet block en-.gageable with the interior wall of a well casing to secure the ratchetblock against turning movement in one' directionfa nut formed in theratchet block, a helically twisted shaft extending therethrough andyslidable and turnable therein, 'independent means for supporting theratchet block at a predetermined point within the casing, a `tool holdersupported by the shaft, and means for transmitting a turning movementthereto.

6. A tool of the character described comprising a ratchet block, aplurality of pawls pivotally mounted in the ratchet block engageablewith the interior wall of a well casing to secure therratchet blockagainst turning movement'in one direction, a nut formed in the ratchetbloc-k, a helically twisted shaft extending therethrough and slidableand turnable therein, :means for supporting the ratchet block at apredetermined point within a well casing, a swivel connection betweenthe ratchet block and said support, a second swivel connection attachedto the lower side of the ratchet block, a tool holder attached to theswivel connection, and means for transmitting a turning movement fromthe vshaft to the tool holder and the swivel connection.

7. In a tool of the charac-ter described, a nut, means for supportingthe nut against vertical movement within a well casing, means carriedbythe nut and lengageable with the interior surface of the well casingto secure the nut against rotation in one directioina helically twistedshaft extending through the nut7 means for imparting a reciprocal'movement to the shaft which movement is simultaneously transmitted torotary move#y ment by the nut and the helical formation of the shaft,and a tool adapted to be rotated by said shaft.

8.The combination with a well casing, vof

a fishing wrench therefor, saidwrench com- Y prising a ratchet block,pawls on said block locking the blockagainst. turning movement in onedirection within the casing, asecond casing adapted to support theratchet block at a predetermined point within the-first named casing, aswivel connection between the second named casingy and the ratchetbloclna nut formed in the ratchet block, a helically twisted shaftslidable and turnable in the nut, and a tool holder adjacent the ratchetblock and below the same adapted to be turned by theshaft. Y

9. The combination with a well'casing, of a fishing wrench therefor,said wrench comprising a ratchet block, pawls on said block locking theblock against turning movement in one direction within the casing,` asecond casing adapted to support the ratchet block 'at a predeterminedpoint within the first named casing, a swivel connection between thesecondfnamed casing vandthe ratchet block, a nut'formedin the ratchetblock, a helically twisted shaft slidable and turnable in the nut, aswivel connectionattached tov the lower side of the ratchet block, atool holder .carried thereby, and means for trans# mitting a turningmovement from the shaft Y to the swivel andthe Atool holder carriedthereby. v .Y Y

CHARLES VT.V DOUGrHER'l-Y`

